5 Tips To Make Your Next Family Road Trip Great

— November 25, 2015

Typically individuals will remember road trips as being either fantastic or totally terrible – there’s not a whole lot of middle ground. So what makes the difference between the two? Most often it’s a combination of a few things.

If you aren’t prepared for the time in the car, that’s going to be an issue. And if you don’t have a few ground rules set up, that’s going to be another. So consider the five following tips before you get set up to head out on your next great family road adventure.

Get Your Car In Working Order

Nothing could be worse than having your car breakdown during a family road trip. And one of the most common issues is a battery going dead. So, a little bit of preventative maintenance is going to go really far, by simply replacing your car battery before heading out. Some shops will have a little testing device at their business location as well, so you can see how your old battery is holding up, or if it’s time to get a new one.

Have Some Car Games Ready

If you don’t already have traditional ones, look up some car games before you hit the road. Depending on the size of your family and the ages involved, there are dozens of common games that will appeal to different folks to keep brains occupied and bodies from getting fidgety. There are always things to do other than games as well, such as just having books to read or music to listen to in order to stay calm and occupied on the road.

Be Sure To Have Enough Charging Stations

And, because everyone is going to have a smartphone and a tablet on them, be sure to have enough phone charging stations ready. There are full car charging solutions that are available now, and especially if you have a few kids that are in their teenage years, you’ll want them to be able to hook up to power at will.

Buy Snacks for the Drive

Being hungry will make people on the road irritable as well. This means you should pack snacks for the car. Try to find relatively healthy stuff that won’t send anyone through sugar ups and downs, and also try to find things that won’t make a mess with too many crumbs.

Make Rules About Who Controls the Music

The music on the road makes a big difference to everyone’s attitude. The driver is probably the most important to get first choice, but if everyone in the car has a certain amount of time allotted to them to choose the station, that helps to give a sense of order and security on the journey.